Top Ministry of Defence civil servant who quit amid Afghan data leak chaos was handed £313,000 payoff

By JAMES TAPSFIELD, UK POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 15:04, 15 July 2026 | Updated: 15:04, 15 July 2026 The top civil servant at the Ministry of Defence received a £313,000 payoff when he quit amid the Afghan data leak scandal. David Williams announced he was leaving in August last year, two weeks after it was publicly revealed that an MoD official accidentally released details of almost 19,000 Afghans who assisted British forces.  Thousands were left fearing for their lives, while more than 100 UK officials were also compromised after the Taliban's return to power. The blunder left the Government facing an estimated £850million bill to resettle those affected.   The breach occurred in 2022 but a super-injunction blocked it being reported until last summer. David Williams announced he was quitting the MoD last year, two weeks after the Afghan data leak emerged publicly The scale of the payment was revealed in the latest Ministry of Defence accounts The BBC reported at the time that Defence Secretary John Healey had a 'conversation' with Mr Williams before the breach became public knowledge and 'made clear that this was the right time to make a change'. Mr Healey praised Mr Williams publicly for 'helping to deliver on the government's priorities'.  'David has so much to be proud of throughout his career and in this role as permanent secretary. I wish him all the very best for the future,' Mr Healey said.  Mr Williams officially stepped down from his £210,000-a-year post as permanent secretary in November last year. He had been in the job since April 2021 and was four months short of finishing his five-year contract.  The latest Ministry of Defence accounts said: 'David Williams CB was awarded a payment of £313,810 related to his voluntary exit from office, in line with Civil Service Compensation Scheme rules.'  According to the documents, Mr Williams had a gold-plated pension pot worth £2.2million. That entitled him to a lump sum of between £240,000 and £245,000 and an annual income of around £100,000.  John Healey was in charge of the Ministry of Defence when Mr Williams' departure happened